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Meath GAA discussion thread

Hammer Archer

Well Galway has a thread, Mayo has one, even Cavan has one so why not us?

Two one point defeats in a row means we're back into relegation trouble especially if we lose to Derry next week. Having said that, beat Derry next week and promotion is still a (remote) possibility. Joe Sheridan leaving for the States certainly isn't going to help.
Thought the performance yesterday was easily the worst of the league. Our away form is killing us still.

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Hammer Archer

Minor hurlers will play Laois in their Leinster quarter final on April 29th in Portlaoise.
Tough game but could be winnable if the league was anything to go by.

Minor footballers travel to Parnell Park on Saturday to play Dublin in round 1 of the MFC. No idea if this year's Dublin side are any better than last year's. I believe they played their U17s in the MFL so their poor performances probably aren't an accurate representation of where they are.

Hammer Archer

And make it to the Leinster quarter final they do. Convincing win over Westmeath. 2-18 to 6 points.
We'll play either Wexford or Laois in the quarter final.

Hammer Archer

Minor hurlers' team for tomorrow's game against Westmeath:

Aaron Dunne (Killyon), Brian O'Reilly (Killyon), Cormac Butler (Ratoath), Sean Coffey (Na Fianna), Jamie Connolly (Longwood), David McGowan (Ratoath), Brin Kelly (Kildalkey), Evan Fitzgerald (Kildalkey), Darren Hennessy (Rathmolyon), Jacob Ryan (Killyon), Tom Fadden (Ratoath), Jamie Leavy (Dunderry), Brian Dowling (Trim), Mikey Mullen (Killyon), Nicky Potterton (Kildalkey).

Throw in is at 3:00pm in Ashbourne.
Great chance for them to make a Leinster quarter final.

sc86

hard enough for a dual player at club level!!

rpurfield

There probably hasn't been a proper top level dual player since Sean Og in Cork, and if I recall correctly that was short lived too, things have gone up a notch in preparation for county teams so it's no suprise the dual player doesn't work any more.

CrabRevolution

iDave wrote: »

Toher is clearly gutted he cant do both and he's a victim of modern GAA where little room is made for dual players and all managers have developed this inflexible my way or the highway approach.

The day of the top level dual player is long gone in fairness. The likes of Eoin Cadogan and Aidan Walsh tried it but inevitably end up picking one over the other. The other examples of "dual" players tend to be the likes of Mickey Burke and Keith Higgins, lads who play for a football dominant county but who get parachuted into their county's lower tier hurling team when they were available.

For all the talk of Sean Boylan being "a hurling man" there were certainly no dual players during his reign as football manager. Any players who played both like Cathal Sheridan or Terry Ferguson, you'll notice their Meath hurling days stop around the same time their Meath football days began. You'd have to go back to the days of Peter Darby to find truly dual players for Meath.

iDave

Toher is clearly gutted he cant do both and he's a victim of modern GAA where little room is made for dual players and all managers have developed this inflexible my way or the highway approach.

CrabRevolution

Hammer Archer wrote: »

Thoher's reaction to being dropped off the hurling team

With all due respect to James, I don't think he's come off too well with that statement. I know that he has shown his dedication to the hurlers over the last number of years, but that was obviously because he wasn't with the footballers. He had a choice to make with the Division 2B final and he chose the footballers so I can't see the problem with the hurling management dropping him as he clearly was not dedicated to the hurlers this season (which is obviously his choice).
On a related note, the Chronicle seem to be sticking the knife into the hurlers over the last week or so. After winning another national title, their top sport's story was Toher and Burke getting dropped.

Maybe because newspapers (and other media) love the idea of dual players for some reason even if it's patently false. During the league the likes of the chronicle, hoganstand, lmfm etc. probably produced an article every weekend about "busy weekend for Toher with hurling and football both on" even though it was set in stone that he'd only be playing the football, or "Quick turnaround after last weeks hurling game for Burke and Toher...." despite neither of them having played in said hurling. Naturally once they were dropped they run "hurling management standing in the way of dual players" stories too.

In reality there were no "dual" players at any stage, just footballers who over the course of 3 months had about 2 weekends free for hurling.

Speaking of good hurlers on the football panel, what's the story with Alan Douglas? Seemed to make a big breakthrough last year but barely been seen this year so far.

Hammer Archer

Thoher's reaction to being dropped off the hurling team

With all due respect to James, I don't think he's come off too well with that statement. I know that he has shown his dedication to the hurlers over the last number of years, but that was obviously because he wasn't with the footballers. He had a choice to make with the Division 2B final and he chose the footballers so I can't see the problem with the hurling management dropping him as he clearly was not dedicated to the hurlers this season (which is obviously his choice).
On a related note, the Chronicle seem to be sticking the knife into the hurlers over the last week or so. After winning another national title, their top sport's story was Toher and Burke getting dropped.

Rock Lesnar

Galway winning the division makes the game in down even more depressing

Hammer Archer

Minor hurlers beat Wicklow in the Leinster minor hurling championship. 4-28 to 13 points. Play Westmeath next week.

rpurfield

CrabRevolution wrote: »

The Ring Medals have been given out alright.

http://www.meathchronicle.ie/sport/gaa/articles/2017/01/05/4132585-meath-hurlers-shape-up-for-new-campaign/

Not sure where he gets his info from.

Cheers, that's that cleared up anyway!!

Hammer Archer

Anyone know if the Minor football league final will be played at all? We were due to play Cork in the final weeks ago. Can't see it being played now with the MFC on the horizon.

iDave

The decision has been made so onwards and upwards. Roll on April 23 and June 4. Up Meath.

CrabRevolution

rpurfield wrote: »

The Keogh ones I could half understand but surely the Ring ones have gone out?

The Ring Medals have been given out alright.

http://www.meathchronicle.ie/sport/gaa/articles/2017/01/05/4132585-meath-hurlers-shape-up-for-new-campaign/

Not sure where he gets his info from.

paul0103

Decent article, but not sure if it's all fully true. There certainly was a banquet for the hurlers at the end of last year to present the Christy Ring medals, I'm sure the Chronicle covered it too.
Edit: Here is the article

As for Toher and Burke, it looks like Martin Ennis was left with no choice. I think the hurling team is at the stage now where it's no longer acceptable to come and go as you like, and rightly so. Sure, Toher is a loss, but a unified and happy camp can go some way towards making up for it.

rpurfield

CrabRevolution wrote: »

I know a few players who were on those Kehoe cup teams. The lack of medals doesn't really bother them. Some medals have been given out randomly to a few panel members or to a selector to pass on to his clubs panelists etc.

I'd imagine it could be a case of money. In 2014 I'd say Meath county board didn't want to pay for a whole dinner for 70 panel members+guests simply to hand out pre season medals. It probably snowballed then since they won it twice in a row it easily became 90+ people to invite to an awards ceremony.

The Keogh ones I could half understand but surely the Ring ones have gone out?

CrabRevolution

I know a few players who were on those Kehoe cup teams. The lack of medals doesn't really bother them. Some medals have been given out randomly to a few panel members or to a selector to pass on to his clubs panelists etc.

I'd imagine it could be a case of money. In 2014 I'd say Meath county board didn't want to pay for a whole dinner for 70 panel members+guests simply to hand out pre season medals. It probably snowballed then since they won it twice in a row it easily became 90+ people to invite to an awards ceremony.

rpurfield

Read this the other day by Gavan Reilly about Meath hurling and it's excellent, one thing though, how have they not given out them medals yet?? That can't be right

https://thecon.ie/meath-and-the-odyssey-of-the-christy-ring-cup-15f9122f3b8c

sc86

iDave wrote: »

Is James Toher really turning up when it 'suits him' though. Harshly worded, he's given Meath GAA a lot of commitment in one form of another over the years. Particularly the hurlers when it wasn't fashionable to be associated with Meath hurling. Really think some compromised should of been reached.

its impossible for anybody to be in 2 places at one time and sadly thats the joys of a dual player in the gaa
he picked football and best of luck to him
plenty of other good players to choose from this year thankfully

CrabRevolution

iDave wrote: »

Is James Toher really turning up when it 'suits him' though. Harshly worded, he's given Meath GAA a lot of commitment in one form of another over the years. Particularly the hurlers when it wasn't fashionable to be associated with Meath hurling. Really think some compromised should of been reached.

As far as I've heard there was no compromise at all. There was to be no football sessions missed and Toher could try fit what hurling he could into whatever days he had free.

I'd be surprised if he averaged one hurling session a week. It was unsustainable for a team playing in the Leinster Hurling Championship.

BonnieSituation

sc86 wrote: »

it happened last week or mayby even week before
cant have lads turning up when it suits them
your either in or your out
call should have been made weeks ago
bad for the rest of the squad with that going on
shame as they would be good additions

I read this as a poem/Limerick. I was seriously confursed by the whole thing.

---

Did any of ye get to listen to McEntee on Off The Ball last week. It was brilliant radio it must be said. Dying to have a proper look at ye in the summer.

iDave

sc86 wrote: »

it happened last week or mayby even week before
cant have lads turning up when it suits them
your either in or your out
call should have been made weeks ago
bad for the rest of the squad with that going on
shame as they would be good additions

Is James Toher really turning up when it 'suits him' though. Harshly worded, he's given Meath GAA a lot of commitment in one form of another over the years. Particularly the hurlers when it wasn't fashionable to be associated with Meath hurling. Really think some compromised should of been reached.

sc86

iDave wrote: »

Fergal Lynch tweeting Burke and Toher dropped from hurling panel for Leinster SHC.
Think thats mad surely they and Toher in particular could of been accomadated. Leinster hurling is April and May while Leinster football is June.

it happened last week or mayby even week before
cant have lads turning up when it suits them
your either in or your out
call should have been made weeks ago
bad for the rest of the squad with that going on
shame as they would be good additions

iDave

Fergal Lynch tweeting Burke and Toher dropped from hurling panel for Leinster SHC.
Think thats mad surely they and Toher in particular could of been accomadated. Leinster hurling is April and May while Leinster football is June.

Hammer Archer

Ugh Ballycran! Down had played all their home games in Newry before that only to switch to Ballycran out of the blue for the replay.
Lovely part of the world, don't get me wrong, and the ferry from Strangford to Portaferry is a novelty, but a b!tch to get to.
2013 was also when we went through the league unbeaten only to play London in the final with a hurricane force wind that made it a lottery. We lost by 2 despite beating them by 9 in Trim a month before.

iDave

2013 was a sickener for the hurlers also. Played out a cracker in Trim for the semi only to draw with Down
Up to Ballycran for the replay and lost by about 10 then.
Down went on to win the final.

I'll believe the PT progress when i see cranes onsite. Levying the clubs! Could naming rights not be considered?

Hammer Archer

I remember the equally tragic 2007 CR semi final against Kildare directly after the Meath - Galway football game in Portlaoise. We raced from there to Tullamore for the hurling but only caught the second half.
I remember us hitting a ridiculous number of wides in the last 10 minutes or so. Then Nicky Horan hit the post with a last minute sideline ball and we ended up losing by a point. Would have had a great chance against Westmeath in the final.

PT redevelopment has taken another step:
http://hoganstand.com/meath/ArticleForm.aspx?ID=268603

CrabRevolution

I'm not sure if anyone else remembers it, but we're really only after righting a wrong from all the way back in 2008 as far as I'm concerned. In 2008 there was a big reshuffle in the hurling league and championships to be in place for 2009. To avoid relegation in the league Meath had to finish in the top 2 of their 6 team group. Naturally enough Meath finished 3rd, only a point behind 2nd.

As a result of this in 2009 we were playing Armagh and Mayo instead of Carlow, Laois, and Westmeath. That pattern has continued for the last decade or so, every year we're about on a par with Down/Kildare and we're regularly disposing of Donegal, Roscommon, Fingal etc. instead of testing ourselves vs higher teams.

The Christy Ring that year was equally tragic. Meath had to finish in the top 2 in a 3 team group to progress. Then this happened.

A goal more (or even a point more vs. Mayo) would have seen us through. Instead we got relegated to the Nicky Rackard, which was quickly righted, but still was a waste of a year.

Django99

iDave wrote: »

Hurling 2A

Kerry
Carlow
Kildare
Westmeath
London
Meath

Hard to know until Leinster round robin how we stack up against some of those teams but youd be confident of survival. Antrim got promoted from that group and we beat them for fun last year

It will be a big year for a lot of teams, Kerry will be eager to get straight back up and have built good experience in 1B and the round robin stages in Leinster.

Kildare have a few new players who will probably settle a bit better next year and will be dangerous. Carlow and Westmeath have both put in some good performances in various competitions over the last 2 years.

Having said that, Meath shouldn't and won't fear anyone. If they stay the Liam McCarthy this year they should be full of confidence going into that group. Great to see Meath at this level.